Jail won't hold asylum seekers
A PROPOSAL to house asylum seekers at Ashwell Prison will not take place.
Last week it was revealed the jail was on a list of potential sites to house a new centre for those awaiting decisions on asylum claims or facing deportation.
But this week Rutland MP Alan Duncan said he had met
Prisons Minister Maria Eagle and had secured a commitment that the prison would not be used to house failed asylum seekers awaiting deportation.
Mr Duncan said that instead one of the possible uses would be for the prison to be reclassified to hold foreign offenders waiting to be deported.
The Rutland MP, who is Shadow Prisons Minister, added that prison security would remain comparable to existing levels.
Mr Duncan said: "I am pleased to say that the threat of Rutland housing the next Sangatte has lifted.
"We will not now be seeing the prison turned into a stopping point for illegal immigrants on their way home from Britain."
But he added a note of caution.
He said: "This is progress, but the minister's plans would still mean that Ashwell was no longer a prison. If the prison is rebuilt to house foreign offenders this may make sense, as it would have similar security and staffing requirements.
"As I said in the House of Commons last week, there are far too many foreign nationals in UK prisons and it is high time we acted to deport them humanely and quickly.
"Any process to reclassify the prison must be done transparently and in consultation with the people of Rutland.
"My preference remains to keep Ashwell as a Category C prison."
A Prison Service spokesman said that "all options" for Ashwell were still being considered. A strategic review of the future of the jail is currently under way.
The spokesman said: "All options for Ashwell are still being considered and this includes re-designation of the prison as a closed immigration removal centre which would mainly hold foreign national prisoners who have completed their sentence and are awaiting deportation.
"The security level of Ashwell would remain similar to a Category C prison."
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Stamford
Saturday 26 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: East
